"After a year of back and forth, the U.S. Senate on Wednesday confirmed Jared Isaacman, a tech billionaire who has paid to go to space twice, to head the space agency. His confirmation comes at a pivotal moment for NASA, which is under mounting pressure from both budget cuts and technical hurdles that together could scuttle its most ambitious missions."
"But Trump renominated Isaacman in November. Now that Isaacman has the job, his attention is likely to be fixed on getting NASA back on track to putting astronauts on the moon in 2028. U.S. lawmakers have told him repeatedly throughout his confirmation process that beating China to the moon is the top priority; Beijing plans to land its astronauts on the lunar surface by 2030."
Jared Isaacman, a 42-year-old tech billionaire who has paid to fly to space twice, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to lead NASA. The agency faces mounting pressure from budget cuts and technical hurdles that could derail major projects. Key programs at risk include returning already-collected Martian rock samples to Earth and meeting the goal of returning U.S. astronauts to the moon by 2028. Isaacman was first nominated in December 2024, withdrawn in May over apparent conflicts of interest tied to donations and associations, and renominated in November. Lawmakers have emphasized beating China to the moon as a top priority.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]